Demand doubles for Victoria’s dedicated legal service for victims of crime

Published:: Monday 16 March 2026 at 9:00 am

The VLS has provided more than 12,000 services to Victorian victims of crime since it was established in March 2023. It is the first and only statewide service of its kind and is delivered in partnership by the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service, Djirra, Women’s Legal Service Victoria, Victoria Legal Aid and the Federation of Community Legal Centres alongside seven community legal centres.

The model, designed together with victims of crime, includes a specialist helpline as well as more intensive legal assistance provided by partner legal services.

Demand for the service has increased significantly since it commenced, with the average number of requests for help increasing from 205 per month in 2023 to 406 per month in 2025.

A new report released today details the impact of the service, which helps victims of crime gain access to financial assistance to get their lives back on track and address pressing needs like their health and safety. It also helps victim-survivors of sexual violence when applications are made to disclose their confidential medical or counselling records in court.

According to the ‘Impact report: Three years of Victoria’s Victims Legal Service’, from its commencement in March 2023 until January 2026, the VLS provided a total of 12,097 services to Victorian victim-survivors, including:

providing information and legal advice following 10,513 enquiries to the VLS Helpline
successfully referring 802 victims to VLS partners for more intensive legal assistance
providing over 2,000 individual victim-survivors with further legal advice and/or ongoing legal assistance.

The report raises concern about the lack of long-term funding for the VLS, calling for greater investment in ‘comprehensive legal services for victim-survivors’. It also warns that while the impact of the program has been significant, at least 727 victim-survivors had to be turned away due to a lack of capacity in VLS partners to accept referrals based on the current limited funding.

The VLS was established after the Victorian Government committed $7.3 million over three years in the 2021-22 budget. The funding was extended for a further 12-months, however it is due to end in June 2026.

The report includes stories of 11 clients which together demonstrate the impact of the service. It shows that following an analysis of 25 finalised outcomes achieved by the VLS since the commencement of the Financial Assistance Scheme in November 2024, the VLS helped obtain over $380,000 in financial assistance for victim-survivors.

The VLS plays a crucial role in supporting victims of crime to navigate the new Financial Assistance Scheme, making sure they can understand and exercise their rights.

Claudia Fatone, CEO of Women's Legal Service Victoria said:

‘With funding due to expire in just weeks, people are at real risk of losing access to this essential legal help, which can be the gateway to financial support after experiencing family and sexual violence. For many victim‑survivors, the Victims Legal Service is the only way they can change the locks on their home, access counselling, secure stable housing, or provide for their children while they recover. The Victorian Government must demonstrate its support of victim-survivors by urgently securing the future of the Victims Legal Service.’

Nerita Waight, CEO of the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service said:

‘The VLS is a critical part of supporting Aboriginal community members who have been impacted by crime, to heal and seek an avenue of justice. Through a trauma informed and culturally capable approach, VALS' Victims Legal Service walks alongside our clients so they feel seen and heard. This service needs to be funded in full so we can continue this important and necessary work.’

Antoinette Braybrook AM, CEO of Djirra said:

‘Aboriginal women experiencing family violence must have access to their legal rights and other critical supports for their safety. Victims Legal Service funding means that Djirra can continue to provide the specialist legal and non-legal wraparound supports that Aboriginal women deserve, and that shield women from punitive and racist systems. Family violence does not have an end date. We call upon the Victorian Government to prioritise this funding beyond 30 June 2026.’

Toby Hemming, CEO of Victoria Legal Aid said:

‘The VLS has become an essential service in Victoria’s justice system, providing victims of crime with specialist trauma-informed legal information, advice and casework. By working together as a partnership, the service has been able to increase access to justice while minimising the trauma of the justice process.’

Rachael Pliner, Co-Director of Policy and Advocacy at the Federation of Community Legal Centres said:

‘Secure and sustainable funding is needed to ensure that the VLS model can continue to be delivered in the future. Community legal centres form an important component of the VLS model, helping victim-survivors with complex legal problems and ongoing case work. As it stands, the current model only funds 12 full-time positions at community legal centres for VLS work across the whole state. This is a really uncertain situation for community legal centres and their clients, who don’t know if ongoing casework can be sustained in the coming months, with funding due to end this June.’

VLS partners include the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service, Djirra, Women’s Legal Service Victoria, Victoria Legal Aid, South-East Monash Legal Service, Northern Community Legal Centre, Inner Melbourne Community Legal Centre, Gippsland Community Legal Service, Mallee Family Care, Eastern Community Legal Centre and Allied Justice.